Chariots of Fire – Crucible Theatre, Sheffield

Adaptor: Mike Bartlett

Director: Robert Hastie

This is a stunning, spectacular adaptation of the iconic film of 1981 that tells the extraordinary true, inspiring story of the 1924 Paris Olympics and the dazzling exploits of Harold Abrahams and Eric Liddell. And it could not have come at a better time with the 2024 Olympics starting in Paris later this month. The running length of two and a half hours race by (forgive the pun) as the audience is transported back to 1923/24 and all the events leading up to and including the Paris Olympics. The whole Company is extremely talented and suitably athletic and all convince in their various roles. There is not a weak link among them. Anyone brought up on the classic film and all the iconic images it evokes need not worry about how it could possibly work on the stage. You will not be disappointed and you will be moved by an entrancing evening’s entertainment.

The Crucible stage has rarely been used to such effect. Set and Costume Designer Ben Stones has done a great job in making full use of the thrust stage to create contrasting settings of Cambridge, Scotland and Paris with additional scenes set in a railway station and embarking on a ship. Each scene is effectively and effortlessly staged and all the costumes are amazing to look at. The scene where Abrahams and Andrew Lindsay (Benjamin Westerby) race each other at Cambridge has them making full use of the theatre’s multiple exits and entrances as they disappear at one end and reappear at the other to great effect. General race scenes and training is shown by making full use of the revolving stage, lighting and slow motion to recreate all the tension and excitement of Olympic glory.

Of course this story ultimately depends for its success on the efficacy of the two leads and Adam Bregman (Abrahams) and Michael Wallace (Liddell) do not disappoint. Both play their roles to perfection, Bregman as the talented, driven athlete determined to be the best in his field and Wallace as the highly principled Christian missionary who will not compromise his faith and compete on a Sunday, thereby forfeiting his chance of Olympic glory in the 100 yards as the heats are scheduled for this day. The Jewish Abrahams has to contend with antisemitism and prejudice in his life whilst Liddell sometimes struggles with wanting to do the right thing by his faith and glorifying God by his talent as a runner. It is really interesting to see just how times have changed in the last 100 years with the whole approach to athletics and competition in sport generally. Nowadays all the emphasis is on professional coaching, sports psychology and not leaving anything to chance in the pursuit of victory whereas then the whole thing was basically amateurish with trainers and coaches who were deemed to be “professional” banned from even being involved. The relationship between Abrahams and Sam Mussabini (Ben Kingsley lookalike Waleed Elgadi) was nearly responsible for Abrahams being prevented from being able to compete.

All the Company are universally good and all really deserve a mention by name. Space precludes this but the two senior members of the cast, Richard Cant and Mark Lockyer, should be congratulated for their portrayals in a number of roles. And what about that memorable theme tune of Vangelis that for the majority encapsulates everything to be said about Chariots of Fire? You’ve no need to worry as it features memorably in the closing scene and ensures a rapturous standing ovation from an appreciative audience and sends them home with that tune firmly playing in their heads.

Runs until Saturday 27 July 2024